By Isaac SIMS-FOSTER

As the Crescenta Valley Radio Club prepares for its annual Field Day event, local amateur radio operators, as well as those across the U.S. and Canada, are readying their equipment.

The Crescenta Valley Radio Club has been in operation since the 1950s. Most people think of amateur radios, also known as hams, as the last resort in communication should disaster strike but, in fact, there’s more to it than that.

Amateur radio operators are not “professionally paid for their skill, expertise, or science … they are federally licensed to operate on a wide range of frequencies,” said George Eckart, a member of CVRC and a participating operator in the upcoming Field Day event. “They’re commissioned by the FCC to be involved in innovative work in communication as well as provide emergency services communication.”

Eckart added that many people may think of radio operation as a desk job, but rather these amateur radio operators experiment and explore with their technology to reach each other across great distances. Some of these innovations include satellite and television communication, high-speed networking, and even bouncing signals off the moon to contact someone on the opposite side of the Earth.

The annual Field Day is a chance to try out these technologies.

“[We] take our equipment, literally, into the field to prepare for emergency communications by setting up and making contact with other operators around the country,” Eckart explained. “It actually takes the form of a contest in which [an operator is] trying to make as many contacts as possible within 24 hours.”

This weekend, June 23-24, these operators will have the opportunity to test themselves and their equipment, as well as intensely engage with each other through their craft. Operators will be heading to Verdugo Park near Glendale Community College from 11 a.m. to 11 a.m. for the annual Field Day exercises. Among the goals is to hone communications skills locally, regionally and nationally under circumstances that mimic a disaster.

“It is great practice for us and provides our members with the opportunity to showcase the contribution that amateur radio can make,” Eckart stated.

The public is invited to come to the park, located at 1621 Cañada Blvd. in Glendale, during the 24 hours of the event to learn more about ham radio operation.

The Crescenta Valley Radio Club meets every second Thursday of the month at Verdugo Hills Hospital at 7:30 p.m. The meetings are open to the public and all are invited to attend. For more information, contact Michael L. Lichtman (KF6KXG), club president, through the club website cvrc.club.

  Isaac Sims-Foster